Are Some People Luckier Than Others?

Most people who are familiar with my habits know better than to call me on Monday nights. That's when The Voice is on. I'm fascinated how someone with no experience gets four chairs to turn while some who have been pounding it out for years can't get one. But then again, until they narrow down the group a bit, I'm not so much interested in the talent that tries to get a chair to turn around as I am the bodies in those chairs. To spend an hour or two staring at Usher, Blake and Adam does a romance writer's heart good.

The other night, though, it wasn't just the body that got to me. Usher was attempting to console one of the contestants who wasn't quite good enough. He said the person needed to continue to practice because "luck favors those who are prepared."

And that got me to thinking about writing--another artistic talent where the road to fame and fortune is equally elusive. Oh, sure, we've all heard stories about the author who writes his or her first book ever, on a whim, and it becomes an instant success, is one of Oprah's book club picks, gets turned into a movie and makes the author a million bucks. But, for most of us, it doesn't happen like that. We take classes, hone our craft, talk to others in the industry, slash the crap out of our work, massage, massage, massage. Then, maybe, if luck is favoring us, we'll win a few contests, maybe even a big one. We'll catch the interest of an editor or an agent. We'll be signed to a contract for a release date that's now reaching into late 2014. Then,  we'll wait another six months for a royalty check.

In the meantime, we're blogging, reading books on how to write, building a fan base, attending conferences, learning, always learning. After all, we want to be prepared when luck favors us.